This unit is all about analyzing speeches, so we’re going to begin with learning how to really listen. Before we do, here’s a quick exercise to give you an idea of how attentive a listener you are at the moment. Look up “Gordon Brown Speeches” online (or something similar). Your task is to listen to just ten minutes of a speech by the previous UK prime minister and try to note where your attention first wanders. Then answer the following questions:

What is the Internet address of the speech you listed to?
At what point did you notice yourself first thinking of something else or “zoning out”?
What is Gordon Brown saying in the first ten minutes of his speech and how much of it do you remember?
Why do you think your attention wandered?